Star Gate

Chapter 707: Turning Into a Fatty With One Bite (II)

Footsteps sounded at the door after Li Hao drank a few cups of tea and ate a few bites.

“Enter!”

The female manager led someone inside. Li Hao tilted his head to see a woman of moderate age—she seemed thirty years old at most. She wore a luxurious cloak with her hair done up in a simple bun. Once inside, the manager helped the woman take off her outerwear. The absence of a shawl and cloak revealed the woman’s impressive figure and form-fitting brocade outfit underneath.

“I have long heard of your name, Skystar Marquis!” The woman smiled a perfect smile and appeared particularly enthusiastic, but Li Hao found the sight uncomfortable. This smile... was the same as the one he’d trained into himself at the Inspectorate.

It was a standard hypocritical smile.

“Commander Li, this is the pavilion master, the seventh princess of the royal family,” the manager quickly introduced.

Li Hao looked at the other and smiled, gesturing for Panther to move. The dog jumped down from the stool.

“Please have a seat, Your Highness!” Li Hao smiled.

“......” The female manager’s expression shifted, but not a flicker crossed the seventh princess’ face. She walked up and sat down, not caring in the slightest that a dog had just vacated the stool.

“What an honor. It is said that Panther is the direct descendant of an ancient monster spirit and its bloodline is strong. Although the ancient civilization is no more, its bloodlines are passed on. This seat would like nothing more than to converse with the great Panther.”

The dog raised its head proudly, but otherwise ignored the princess. Li Hao inwardly marveled at the princess’ silver tongue. This is how you react when I have you sit in a spot where a dog was sitting? Why don’t you just marry Panther then?

“There will definitely be chances to!” Li Hao laughed and looked at this seventh princess with new wariness. None of the other royal family members were active outside the palace. The Steppe Prince had handled all outside matters, but this seventh princess was in charge of the Nine Dragons Pavilion. She was no ordinary character.

As for her strength... Li Hao couldn’t tell at all! She couldn’t be characterized as an ordinary martial master—she must be wearing something that concealed her presence. It even obscured all of her energy. The item must be a powerful origin weapon that concealed everything about the holder. It could even be a fragment of a bronze mirror!

Li Hao had one such piece and knew its immense capabilities well. He’d had the feeling of being kept under watch when he entered the Nine Dragons Pavilion. Therefore, there might be such an item in residence, or even on the seventh princess.

“A few days ago, the Skystar Marquis executed some bugs that undermine the foundations of our nation. Thankfully, royal father’s efforts have borne fruit. So it turns out that the Steppe Prince colluded with the nine ministries! He is truly the shame of the royal family. Thank goodness the marquis executed him. Otherwise, the outside would think my family is the same as the nine ministries—termites to be found everywhere!”

Damn if she didn’t know how to talk! She turned the Steppe Prince into a traitor as soon as she arrived.

The poor Steppe Prince had worked prudently and conscientiously for the royal family for many years, but such was his treatment in the end. Not only was he labeled a traitor, but he’d colluded with the nine ministries.

Li Hao immediately understood that there was no point in beating around the bush with this one. Her experience in such areas was so much more than his. Thus, he decided to cut straight to the chase. “I won’t waste time dancing around, there’s no point in that. Can you represent the royal family, Your Highness?”

“It depends on what the matter is,” chuckled the seventh princess. “Of course, I can contact my royal father if there is something I cannot make the decision in. Will the Skystar Marquis be satisfied in direct contact with my royal father?”

“I will!” Li Hao affirmed with appreciation. “Who says a woman is less than a man? I thought the royal family was filled with characters like Southern Fist. Ahem, well, that’s wrong. He’s a Silver Moon martial master, I almost criticized myself.”

“Master He is an authentic person who does not put on affected airs.” The seventh princess continued to smile radiantly. “He has been in his position in the palace for many years and raised an outstanding talent such as ninth royal brother. My younger brother has quite the valor of Silver Moon martial masters. All of the royal family quite likes Master He.”

Ninth royal brother?

He Yong had mentioned being close with one of the princes. Was it the ninth royal brother being mentioned now?

Li Hao wasn’t too familiar with the royal family, he only knew that there were nine princes and thirty-six dukes. Not including ones who came into their dukedom like the Xus, those dukes were all of the royal family proper.

Li Hao had been led astray from the topic at hand, but he asked curiously, “Does the Skystar King have many children? You’re number seven, so how old are you? You don’t look older than thirty.”

“......” The manager was seized by an urge to tiptoe out of the room or burrow into the ground. How could he just ask questions like that? That would easily raise royal enmity!

The seventh princess didn’t mind and laughed softly. “The Skystar Marquis is as straightforward as ever. My royal father has twenty-two children—”

“That’s less than Thunderleg!”

“......” The seventh princess kept herself contained with effort. “I’m ranked number seven and will forgo revealing my age. My ninth brother is twenty years old this year, the same age as the marquis.”

“Twenty years old! He’s so young!” Li Hao sighed with emotion. “So he was just born when Martial Uncle Southern Fist joined the palace?”

All of this was beside the point, so he brought conversation back on track after conversing a bit more. “The seventh princess also knows that apart from the Inspectorate, the rest of the nine ministries want nothing more than to eat me alive. That’s what I get for killing five of their Arcanus and Hu Xiao in one go.

“It’s very dangerous for me to continue to stay here, but I’m a more explicit person at times. The more you want me to leave, the more I’ll dig in my heels and fight against you to the end!” Li Hao sneered. “Not to mention, I know they won’t dare easily take action or do anything to me while they face the royal family.”

The seventh princess dropped the pretense upon seeing Li Hao be so direct. “Then what would the Skystar Marquis like to accomplish on this trip?”

“I’m not going to help the royal family!”

“......” The princess furrowed her brows.

“But I’ll continue to take down the nine ministries. So although I say I won’t help you, our goals are the same!”

The princess nodded.

“I will not tolerate living under the same roof as them, particularly the current minister of the Judiciary. He likely wants to eat my flesh and drink my blood. After repeated consideration, I find that I am still in danger at staying in Skystar City at this time...”

The seventh princess didn’t immediately understand his intent. “Does the marquis wish for the royal family to provide you with some shelter?”

“That isn’t it!” Li Hao shook his head. “There’s no need for that, not to mention I wouldn’t be at ease with you giving me shelter. Who knows if you’re looking to kill me and take my family’s weapon or not!”

“......” The sharp seventh princess had nothing to say. She really couldn’t guess at Li Hao’s thoughts sometimes. What do you want then?

“I’m here for the royal family because I have a few matters I’d like your participation in. Or you can say your help. Of course, it’s to both our benefit!”

“Please speak frankly, Skystar Marquis!”

“Give me a complete dossier on the nine ministries, including the number of their powerhouses, level of their Arcanus, strength of their peripheral factions... I want the most complete version, not the neutered version that circulates outside. I’m sure you have it! Knowing my enemies as well as I know myself will ensure that I do not lose my battles. I’m sure you know these things.”

Li Hao raised one finger, then continued, “Second, I want to face off against the nine ministries and set up a Skystar martial dao university in the city. Earthturner Sword will be the headmaster. I also hope to make the Skystar Commander Office a separate faction. Or rather, an independent entity.

“Combined with the Skystar Martial University and the Night Watchers, the three factions would form a new agency. Perhaps it’d be more accurate to call it the tenth ministry! All I need from the royal family is a name. I don’t need you to invest anything.”

The seventh princess’ expression shifted slightly. A tenth ministry! Li Hao was... so very bold.

Not only was the young man bold, but he wanted to carve out the Night Watchers from the Inspectorate. It further shocked the princess and she asked in a low voice, “Has Director Yao Si agreed to this? And the Inspectorate...”

“Director Yao Si naturally has no opinions otherwise,” Li Hao laughed. “As for the Inspectorate... What of them? They wouldn’t find it too many if they gained an enemy, they wouldn’t find it too few if there was one less enemy. Isn’t the royal family concerned about me falling in with the Inspectorate thanks to our good relations?

“In this regard, not only can you drive a wedge between us, but the Inspectorate is sure to be dissatisfied with me. Isn’t that a swell idea? It would be the Inspectorate that’s displeased, the royal family should be happy.”

The seventh princess inclined her head with confusion. “That the Skystar Martial University... is deemed one of the three parties... Is the university going to focus on martial students?”

She could easily see his plans with the Skystar Commander Office and Night Watchers, but what did Li Hao want with a university?

“Of course it will,” Li Hao bared his teeth. “Liu Yunqing said that the people’s heart is worthless. I want to show him that it’s terrifying! I’m going to create an image of being friendly to the regular people, so I’m going to recruit some mundanes for training. I’m going to go back to Silver Moon and seek out the ancient existences in Battle Heaven. They will supply me with large sums of armor so I can forge an army of martial masters to fight the nine ministries! I will use solely martial masters trained from mundanes. The nine ministries will know whether I, Li Hao, can give them a face slapping or not!”

“You... you can take the armor out of Battle Heaven?” gasped the seventh princess.

“I could before, I don’t know if I still can now.” Li Hao shook his head. “But since I am a supernatural now, there will be no rest for them until my vengeance is had! I don’t know if this is possible as Battle Heaven didn’t permit supernaturals from entering it before. I can only give it a try...

“It’d be best if I succeed!” he sighed.

The seventh princess thought rapidly. There wasn’t much to opening a school for ordinary people. It wasn’t important either if he wanted to train martial masters and create an army. it mattered even less that Hong Yitang was to be headmaster.

These events would indeed raise a fuss among the people. This might be the first martial school to be officially open toward mundanes. But it wasn’t like a bunch of martial blockheads could do anything. Whether it was the royal family or nine ministries, they weren’t afraid of this.